Eurovision Song Contest 1982

British broadcaster surprised everyone when deciding that the 1982 Eurovision Song Contest would be held in the northern city of Harrogate

The fairly unknown Harrogate in the United Kingdom was this year's host city of the Eurovision Song Contest. France was absent due to the fact that the national broadcaster thought that the Eurovision Song Contest would not be interesting for its viewers any longer. But already in 1983, France returned to the contest with a different broadcaster. Greece also withdrew from the contest, leaving 18 countries in the competition. Greece was supposed to enter the contest with the song Sarantapente Kopelies performed by Themis Adamantidis but the Greek minister of culture Melina Mercouri decided to withdraw the song just two weeks before the contest as it did not meet her quality standards.

Germany finally had its first win in the history of the song contest with its 27th try. Ein Biβchen Frieden performed by Nicole beat the runner-up by 61 points. At the reprise, Nicole sang the song in four languages: German, English, French and Dutch. Over 13 million West Germans watched Nicole's victory on television and her winning song became a hit in all over Europe.

Finland’s entrant, Kojo, also sang about peace. His song - a protest against nuclear bombs - did not do as well as Germany's, however It received no points at all. For the Belgian singer Stella, it was already the third time she participated in the Eurovision Song Contest: in 1970, she competed for the Netherlands, and in 1977 for Belgium. Her 1982 song Si Tu Aimes Ma Musique was sung fully in French even if Stella hardly spoke the language, being a native Dutch speaker.